Jun 21, 2009 5:29 pm US/Central
A Call To Fathers To Fight Against Violence
Ronald Holt, Father Of Slain Teenage Son, Honored At Englewood Neighborhood Church
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
-
-
Chicago Police Officer Ronald Holt (left), who lost his son to gun violence in 2007, is honored by U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) at a Father's Day forum at the Beloved Community Christian Church, 6430 S. Harvard Ave.
CBS
On this Father's Day, a father who lost his son to gun violence was honored in an Englewood neighborhood church, as he joined with other fathers to remember lives lost, and call on communities to unite in the fight against violence.
As CBS 2's Mike Puccinelli reports, Chicago Police Officer Ronald Holt, the father of murder victim Blair Holt, was honored Sunday by U.S Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) at the Beloved Community Christian Church, 6430 S. Harvard Ave.
Blair Holt, 16, was shot and killed on a Chicago Transit Authority bus at 103rd and Halsted streets on May 10, 2007, as he rode back from Percy L. Julian High School.
Rush also lost a son to gun violence. His 29-year-old son, Huey Rich, was shot and killed on the city's South Side on Oct. 22, 1999. He emphasized the need to win the battle against violence.
"We can't wait for somebody else to do it, because the longer we wait, the more children who are going to be killed," Rush said.
"Every man in here should not bow down the culture of violence that's in our communities," Holt added at the event.
At the Father's Day Forum at the church on Sunday, Rush declared Holt father of the year. Holt was chosen for the award in part because of his son's selfless final act, wherein he used his own body to shield a friend from the killer's bullets.
"I can see why Blair didn't hesitate to give his life for his neighbor," Rush said. The fruit doesn't fall that far from the tree," Rush said.
Holt credits his son for the bravery he showed on the day he died, but he agrees that the early influence of a father can make all the difference in shaping the course of a young person's life.
"The greatest form of crime prevention on the street is having a father from the home from the beginning," Holt said.
Since his son's slaying, Holt has become a crusade against violence. But he fears that unless more men in his community lead by example, more lives will be lost, and more parents will forced to bury a child as he did.
So on Father's Day, this father, who has loved and lost, had a message for the many fathers he says need to step up.
"Say, 'Look, I'm not going to lose to you gangs, guns, drugs and the culture of violence. My job as a father – you're going to hear my voice. You're going to hear me roar. I'm not going to have you getting out there, running and gunning, skinning and grinning, and then bringing that problem back into my house,'" Holt told the congregation.
Last week, two teenage boys pleaded guilty in connection with the murder of Blair Holt.
Michael Pace, 18, admitted to firing the shots that killed Holt, and could be locked up for the rest of his life.
Kevin Jones, 17, admitted to giving Pace the semi-automatic weapon used in the murder. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder and could be sent to prison for 10 years.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Jewish Celebrities
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
Reporting
